South San still living up to reputation

Updated 1:31 am, Saturday, June 23, 2012

Photo: Jerry Lara, San Antonio Express-News

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South San Antonio Independent School District Board of Directors President Helen Madla, left, takes the spot of former president Connie Prado, right, during their regular meeting, Wednesday, June 20, 2012. The first order of the board was to elect a new president and vice-president. less

South San Antonio Independent School District Board of Directors President Helen Madla, left, takes the spot of former president Connie Prado, right, during their regular meeting, Wednesday, June 20, 2012. The ... more

Photo: Jerry Lara, San Antonio Express-News

South San still living up to reputation

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Mr. Mayor, I know you are a busy man, but I think you are needed in South San.

If ever there were a school district in need of intervention, it's the South San Antonio Independent School District. It could use a calm voice of reason and some advice on professionalism.

Just when it appeared there might be some sense of normalcy in this extremely dysfunctional and often political school district, things took a sharp downward turn.

Regrettably, it doesn't look like there will be an improvement soon. To make matters worse, the school board elections in this school district are scheduled in November, and that will bring on its own set of problems. Election-time antics in this school district are quite a spectator sport.

Sadly, the school children in this low achieving, economically deprived school district ultimately will pay the price for the adults' shenanigans. Instead of working to improve public education, the district's board wastes an inordinate amount of time promoting personal agendas.

Wednesday night's board meeting was one for the books. Most notably, the new board majority decided to reposition themselves and hold a board officer election outside the regular cycle. Such elections are usually held after a board election. This turn of events means Connie Prado is out and Helen Madla is in as school board president.

The only thing that could have made the meeting even more worrisome would have been a vote to change the school district's lawyers. That will probably happen next time the newly rearranged board meets. It has almost become a rite of passage for new South San school board presidents to handpick the district's lawyers.

Like the disciplinary problem in the classroom who saps most of the teacher's energy, the South San school board gets a disproportionate amount of local media attention because it just can't seem to keep out of trouble.

Unfortunately, the only ones who can hold school board members accountable are the voters, but it does not mean we can't hope someone can talk some sense into them.

He took that highly polarized board to task for driving the award-winning Jaklich from the district and not working hard enough to keep him.

At that meeting, Castro told the Harlandale board members, “My hope is that the board will be collaborative in its effort in always putting the interest of the students first and the education that happens here, not on who gets a contract or anything else as you all go forward.”

He could have been speaking to the South San board. He should be talking to them.

There was faint optimism about South San's future when the board was given the go-ahead from the Texas Education Agency to fire its longtime superintendent and move forward on hiring a replacement.

Unfortunately, as often happens in South San, the politics turned ugly. The new superintendent, Rebecca Robinson, was hired on a 6-1 vote, and the backroom wheeling and dealing has continued since.

Robinson sat in her first school board meeting Wednesday and received full exposure to just how dysfunctional this board can get.

One would expect a school board to attempt to impress its new top administrator at her first meeting, but then again, this is the South San school board.